SEC Football by the Numbers: Who'll join the Hall of Fame lineup Tuesday?

View full sizeBuddy McClinton, who played safety at Auburn from the 1967 through the 1969 seasons, is one of the 77 Football Bowl Subdivision players on the final ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2013. The new Hall of Fame members will be announced on Tuesday, May 7, 2013.

The SEC has 80 players in the College Football Hall of Fame. At 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, the conference will learn which, if any, of 11 former SEC greats will join the league lineup in the Hall of Fame.

The College Football Hall of Fame has announced the Class of 2013 will include 12 players and two coaches. None of the five coaches on the final ballot are from the SEC. Twenty-seven SEC coaches are in the College Football Hall of Fame.

One of new Hall of Famers has been identified: Earlier today, the College Football Hall of Fame announced during ESPN's "College Football Live" that Miami (Fla.) QB Vinny Testaverde was one of the 12 players in the Class of 2013.

Here's a look at each of this year's SEC nominees:

Brandon Burlsworth, Arkansas, guard, 1995-98: Burlsworth would become the Razorbacks' first Hall of Famer of Arkansas' SEC era. Burlsworth went from a walk-on to a Football News first-team All-American in 1998. He was noted for his thick, black glasses and resemblance to comedian Drew Carey, but his athleticism as a 300-pounder turned heads as he ascended up the football ladder. Burlsworth was drafted in the third round by the Indianapolis Colts in 1999, but 11 days later, he died in a traffic accident at age 22. The Burlsworth Trophy is presented annually to the outstanding FBS player who began his collegiate football career as a walk-on.

Bobby Majors, Tennessee, defensive back, 1969-71: Majors' older brother, Johnny, already is a Hall of Fame member, and like his brother, Bobby excelled in more than one phase of the game. He intercepted 10 passes to lead the nation in 1970, when the Volunteers made an SEC-record 36 interceptions. The next year, he was a unanimous All-American selection. Majors still holds Tennessee records for punt-return yards in a season and a career. The Vols went a combined 30-5 in his three varsity seasons.

Buddy McClinton, Auburn, defensive back, 1967-69: The Montgomery native was a consensus All-American safety in 1969, when he intercepted a school-record nine passes, leading a Tigers' defense that picked off 34 passes, which at the time was an NCAA record. McClinton, who started every game of his varsity career, also holds the Auburn record with 18 career interceptions. That ranks fifth in SEC history, two behind the league mark. However, McClinton intercepted three passes in the Tigers' 34-10 victory over Arizona in the 1968 Sun Bowl, and those are not part of his total because bowl statistics were not included in the official season records at that time.

Paul Naumoff, Tennessee, linebacker, 1964-66: Naumoff links two Hall of Fame linebackers at Tennessee -- Frank Emanuel, who played his final season in 1965, and Steve Kiner, who hit the field in 1967. But Naumoff wasn't a linebacker at all, even though he was a consensus All-American at that position in 1966 and played linebacker for 12 seasons for the Detroit Lions in the NFL. Naumoff was a top-flight defensive end, who shifted to linebacker for his senior season after teammate (and linebacker) Tom Fisher was killed in an automobile accident. In Naumoff's final two seasons, Tennessee gave up 197 points in 22 games.

Art Still, Kentucky, defensive end, 1974-77: You might say it's been all downhill for Kentucky since Still left the Wildcats. In Still's senior season, Kentucky posted a 6-0 SEC record -- its only undefeated conference season -- and the Wildcats haven't finished above .500 in league play since. That year, Still, with a school-record 22 tackles for loss, led a defense that allowed an average of 10 points and 235 yards per game. He became the only unanimous All-American in Kentucky history, and the Kansas City Chiefs took him with the second pick of the 1978 NFL Draft, the highest that an SEC defensive lineman has ever been selected. Still went on to play 12 NFL seasons, including four in which he was selected for the Pro Bowl.

Matt Stinchcomb, Georgia, offensive tackle, 1995-98: Stinchcomb has the requirements covered -- consensus All-American and winner of the Jacobs Blocking Trophy -- and he could become the first SEC player from the 1990s enshrined if he makes it. Stinchcomb also won the Campbell Trophy -- the academic Heisman -- in 1998, then was a first-round draft pick and played six seasons in the NFL.

Derrick Thomas, Alabama, linebacker, 1985-88: Thomas won the 1988 Butkus Award as the nation's best linebacker and finished 10th in the Heisman Trophy balloting that year, when he was a unanimous All-American. And no wonder, since he set a still-standing SEC record with 27 sacks. He also holds SEC career marks with 52 sacks and 74 tackles for loss. Thomas' TFL total is 15 more than any other player in SEC history since that stat became official. Thomas already is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He died in 2000 from a blood clot that developed after he was paralyzed in a traffic accident. If elected Thomas would replace Cornelius Bennett as the most recent Hall of Famer to see action for the Crimson Tide.

Jackie Walker, Tennessee, linebacker, 1969-71: Walker was the first black player to captain an SEC football team and the first black SEC player selected as a first-team All-American, which he was in 1970 and 1971. In his career, Walker returned his 11 interceptions for 281 yards. His five TD interception returns remain tied for the NCAA FBS career mark. Walker has a place in Alabama lore as the object of a blocking scheme that was known as "The Jackie Walker Play." Walker died in 2002 of AIDS, and his homosexuality has been pointed to by his supporters as a reason that Hall of Fame-type honors had been denied to him until recently.

Wesley Walls, Ole Miss, tight end, 1985-88: Walls is listed as a tight end on the ballot, and he was an All-American at that position as a senior and had a long NFL career as a tight end. But Walls played his first three seasons with the Rebels as a linebacker and still saw time on defense as a senior even while playing on offense.

Scott Woerner, Georgia, defensive back, 1977-80: Woerner was the senior leader of Georgia's 1980 national championship team, but two of his freshmen teammates already are in the Hall of Fame -- running back Herschel Walker and safety Terry Hoage. Not only did Woerner do his part in helping the Bulldogs lead the nation in turnover margin in 1980, he also was the nation's leading punt returner that season.

Danny Wuerffel, Florida, quarterback, 1993-96: One of the most decorated players in SEC history, the call from the Hall would add another honor for the former Florida QB. In 1996 alone, Wuerffel swept the major player of the awards, winning the Heisman, Maxwell and Camp, to go along with his second straight O'Brien and first Unitas honors as the nation's top signal-caller. He was, of course, the consensus All-American quarterback in 1996, as well as the winner of the National Football Foundation's Campbell Trophy as the nation's top scholar-football player. He was the SEC MVP in 1995 and 1996, when he also was the MVP of the conference championship game. Apart from all of his hardware, though, Wuerffel also is one of the SEC's biggest winners. The Gators won the SEC championship in all four of his seasons, compiling a 48-6-1 overall record and 30-2 conference mark and capping it by finishing as the No. 1 team in 1996. Wuerffel's 114 career TD passes are 19 more than any other SEC player has ever thrown.

Former South Carolina coach Jim Carlen also is on the ballot. Carlen coached the Gamecocks from 1975 through 1981. He also coached West Virginia and Texas Tech.

Here's a breakdown of the SEC's Hall of Famers by school, including players and coaches. It also includes players and coaches from before the formation of the SEC for the league's current members. Players and coaches who straddle the pre-SEC and SEC eras are listed under SEC.